Random Reading Rants: Fantasy

Not actually a random rant because I have been disliking  a lot of fantasy for a while so…

• Useless information dumps.

-Cannot escape the feeling at times that a lot of information in fantasy really does not actually matter to the story at all. 

-As soon as the story rushes in with useless information I tune out.

• Not enough variety in fantasy worlds.

-Every fantasy world is the same royalty (usually European) world.

– I think a lot of fantasy has lost that feeling of discovering a new world.

• Everything is court politics and all the court politics is lackluster.
• Characters are not selling their worlds.

 -No character variety.  They feel like a carbon copies of every other fantasy character before them.

-Good guys and bad guys there is no in between 

• Too many people being derivative trying to be the next (insert popular fantasy author). They (the stories) have no identity/no unique voice because they are shaped to be exactly (insert popular author)

 

251: Opposite of Always

Synopsis

Jack Ellison King. King of Almost.

He almost made valedictorian.

He almost made varsity.

He almost got the girl . . .

When Jack and Kate meet at a party, bonding until sunrise over their mutual love of Froot Loops and their favorite flicks, Jack knows he’s falling—hard. Soon she’s meeting his best friends, Jillian and Franny, and Kate wins them over as easily as she did Jack. Jack’s curse of almost is finally over.

But this love story is . . . complicated. It is an almost happily ever after. Because Kate dies. And their story should end there. Yet Kate’s death sends Jack back to the beginning, the moment they first meet, and Kate’s there again. Beautiful, radiant Kate. Healthy, happy, and charming as ever. Jack isn’t sure if he’s losing his mind. Still, if he has a chance to prevent Kate’s death, he’ll take it. Even if that means believing in time travel. However, Jack will learn that his actions are not without consequences. And when one choice turns deadly for someone else close to him, he has to figure out what he’s willing to do—and let go—to save the people he loves.

The Bad

1. Never got into it – I just never enjoyed it as a story.

2. Kate and Jack relationship

A. Romance had zero chemistry

B. Their relationship is insta love

C. It was never sold to me as the epic love story they wanted it to seem to be

3. Story is wrapped completely around Kate – which would be fine but look at above. Also, I think that I have consumed other time loop stories that use time loop as device to say and do a lot more than the romance (this one tried but was too focused on Kate).

4. They both eh- Jack is awkward black guy and Kate is a manic pixie dream girl

5. Jack is obsessed with Kate

6. Unresolved setups – for example the Jill & Jack relationship

7. The Time Loop = probably should be number one (if this was ranked by most rantable)

A. Set Time-a couple of hours to a day at most.

Since the time loop in Opposite of Always was months/weeks it came off chaotic and not structured enough.

B. Set order of events.

There is neither a set time or order of events in the loop causing everything to be again chaotic. I also think it hurt Jacks character growth and we (or at least I) readers missed out on the world.

Did it better in my opinion:

~A Week of Mondays

~Happy Death Day

(cover image and synopsis from goodreads)

February Black History Month Wrap Up

 

Pass It On

Selected by: Wade Hudson

Illustrator: Floyd Cooper

Poems are written around kids doing things- its lighthearted which is rare (from what I’ve seen) of African American/black poetry. A lot of poems (I have read) are written by adults about the darkness in this world so they are serious.

Art: black art aesthetic I would like to see make a comeback.

Counting On Catherine

Author: Helaine Becker

Illustrator: Dow Phumiruk

I feel we (us black people) have to constantly rep our history even if it is dark:

1. No one else will
2. If we don’t folks will forget/never know
3. Other folks have a system that constantly reps them automatically

Illustrated by Jerry Pinkney

So totally did not realize when I checked these picture books from the library that they were all illustrated by Jerry Pinkney.

The Patchwork Quilt

Author: Valerie Flournoy

I think it is good to create a story about family and continuing heritage for young African Americans.

Black Cowboys Wild Horses

Author: Julius Lester

I think I liked this story the least although I do think, objectively, magical realism mixed in with a real historical African American figure is cool.

The Hired Hand

Fairy tales (always love seeing black picture books that are fairy tales/ fantastical that talk specifically about black people/talks specifically about African American history), learned more about African American history, I like the lessons

I liked The Hired Hand the best out of all the picture books I read because the story was the most compelling.

Livewire #1

I am tired of people being mad at black folks (specifically black women) for be revolutionaries. You have  Livewire on the front lines protecting people while all these other folks are mad at her for fighting a war that was going to happen. Maybe, there is more to the story in later issues but this was a thought I had.

A possible negative is I felt like I was coming into issue 12 or volume 3- basically coming into the story after an entire arc of story line has happened. I don’t know if it is partially because of my reading mood but I do not feel into the story that much to continue the series.

Beyonce in Formation: Remixing Black Feminism

Author: Omise’eke Natasha Tinsley

Book and Jacket Design: Amanda Weiss

Pro: It used Beyonces Lemonade to educate about black women issues, history, and more.  It made me think introspectively about why some of black feminism does not apply or move me, always enjoy hearing black voices even if they do not align with mine (it makes me think about things I may not normally think about)

Con: At a certain point you have to squint to understand the relation between what is being discussed connects to Beyonce. It felt like the author already came into Lemonade with an interpretation instead of watching it then interpreting it.

Thoughts: When I first started this book last year (alongside Eloquent Rage both talked about Beyonce around same time in this certain way) I had thoughts about people using Beyonce as a avator- people sticking things on her that I do not feel she has earned/represents. They put her on a pedestal that can feel weird. I think it is because she embodies everything we are supposed to aspire to be – she is feminist, problack, married to a successful black man and has kids.

-Respectability is holding black people back from claiming some of our history

-I hope our feminism is not hooked only on sex positivity

 

Closing Remarks

This year I did not do as much in terms of posts celebrating black history month (was/am in a weird reading mood) so if you want look at some posts I did last year…

Black Big Books: 5 Read & 5 Unread

259: A Princess In Theory(&BlackRomance Novels TBR)

Black Young Adult Cover Trends

 

(images are from goodreads)